Jamaica received more than 1,300 deportees in 2025, says PIOJ

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A total of 1,317 Jamaicans were returned to the country as deportees in 2025, a more than 140 per cent increase when compared to the 547 who were returned in 2024.

The information is contained in the 2025 edition of the Economic and Social Survey Jamaica (ESSJ), a publication of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ).

The majority of the deportees, also referred to as involuntary returned migrants (IRMs), came from the United States.

The survey also found that the total number of voluntary returned migrants (VRMs) stood at 852 in 2025, an increase of 52.1 per cent when compared with the 560 who returned home in 2024.

VRMs are individuals who choose to return to their home country or place of origin due to personal decisions, economic opportunities or family reasons.

Conversely, IRMs are those who are forcibly returned or repatriated to their country of origin due to legal reasons such as immigration violations or criminal activities.

In the meantime, the number of Commonwealth Citizens who migrated to Jamaica in 2025 decreased by 3.8 per cent to 3,491 from 3,630 in 2024.

The PIOJ said there was also an increase in the number of aliens registered in 2025, with the figure jumping to  11,029 when compared to the 2024 figure, which stood at 10,146, an 8.7 per cent increase.

The planning institute said that at 49.0 per cent, Asians accounted for the largest share of individuals who requested extension of stay beyond six months, followed by Caribbean nationals at 19.4 per cent, and Africans at 11.4 per cent.